60004 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 188 / Wednesday, September 29, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 2103, 3306, 3703 and 

4302; E.O. 12234, 45 FR 58801, 3 CFR, 1980 

Comp., p. 277; 49 CFR 1.46. 

§ 160.151–57 [Amended] 

■ 58. Amend § 160.151–57(b)(8) by 

removing the word ‘‘Transponder’’ and 

adding, in its place, the word 

‘‘Transmitter’’. 

PART 177—CONSTRUCTION AND 

ARRANGEMENT 

■ 59. The authority citation for part 177 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 2103, 3306; E.O. 

12234, 45 FR 58801, 3 CFR, 1980 Comp., p. 

277; Department of Homeland Security 

Delegation No. 0170.1. 

§ 177.820 [Amended] 

■ 60. Amend § 177.820 in paragraphs 

(d)(1) and (2) by removing the words 

‘‘3.8 meters’’ and adding, in their places, 

the words ‘‘4.572 meters’’. 

PART 184—VESSEL CONTROL AND 

MISCELLANEOUS SYSTEMS AND 

EQUIPMENT 

■ 61. The authority citation for part 184 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 2103, 3306; E.O. 

12234, 45 FR 58801, 3 CFR, 1980 Comp., p. 

277; Department of Homeland Security 

Delegation No. 0170.1. 

§ 184.510 [Amended] 

■ 62. Amend § 184.510(a)(7) by 

removing the words ‘‘LORAN 

coordinates,’’. 

PART 401—GREAT LAKES PILOTAGE 

REGULATIONS 

■ 63. The authority citation for part 401 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 2104(a), 6101, 7701, 

8105, 9303, 9304; Department of Homeland 

Security Delegation No. 0170.1; 46 CFR 

401.105 also issued under the authority of 44 

U.S.C. 3507. 

§ 401.110 [Amended] 

■ 64. Amend § 401.110(a)(9) by 

removing the text ‘‘CG–54122’’ and 

adding, in its place, the text ‘‘CG–5522’’. 

Dated: September 17, 2010. 

Sandra Selman, 

Acting Chief, Office of Regulations and 

Administrative Law, United States Coast 

Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2010–23766 Filed 9–28–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Office of the Secretary 

49 CFR Part 71 

[OST Docket No. OST–2010–0046] 

Relocation of Standard Time Zone 

Boundary in the State of North Dakota: 

Mercer County 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: DOT is moving all of Mercer 

County, North Dakota to the central time 

zone. Prior to this action, all of Mercer 

County was located in the mountain 

time zone. This action is taken in 

response to a petition filed by the Board 

of County Commissioners for Mercer 

County and is based on comments made 

at a public hearing and filed in the 

docket. 

DATES: Effective Date: This final rule 

will be effective November 7, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert C. Ashby, Deputy Assistant 

General Counsel for Regulation and 

Enforcement, U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Room W94–302, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 

DC 20590, (202) 366–9310, 

bob.ashby@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

For more than a century, time zone 

boundaries in North Dakota have had an 

interesting and varied history. 

Beginning in 1883, mountain time was 

observed in the southwest portion of the 

State and a few locations in the 

northwest, with central time being used 

elsewhere. In 1929, the Interstate 

Commerce Commission (ICC), which 

then had jurisdiction over time zone 

boundaries, extended central time to 

cover all but a cluster of counties in the 

southwest corner of the State. Congress 

transferred the ICC’s time zone 

boundary powers to the Department of 

Transportation (DOT) in 1967. DOT 

exercises these powers under the 

provisions of the Uniform Time Act of 

1966 (15 U.S.C. 260–64). 

The Department has exercised its 

authority under this statute in several 

proceedings affecting North Dakota. In 

1968, in response to a petition from the 

Governor of North Dakota, the 

Department placed 14 counties lying 

south and west of the Missouri River 

into mountain time. The change was 

made to accommodate the historical 

pattern of time observance in the State. 

In 1992, in response to a petition from 

the Board of Commissioners of Oliver 

County (which is adjacent to Mercer 

County), the Department moved that 

county into the central time zone. The 

Department took similar action with 

respect to Morton County and a portion 

of Sioux County in 2003. 

In 2000–2003, the Department 

considered a petition from the Mercer 

County Commission to move the county 

to the central time zone. The proposal 

was controversial in the county. A 2000 

referendum favored changing to central 

time by a vote of 1,180 to 1,038. 

However, a majority of written 

comments to the Department’s docket, 

and much of the sentiment of persons 

attending a public hearing, favored 

keeping the county in the mountain 

time zone. After considering the 

comments, and while acknowledging 

the reasons supporting a change, the 

Department decided to deny the petition 

(68 FR 53082; September 9, 2003). The 

Department’s decision noted that the 

Commission was free to file a new 

petition on the subject in the future. In 

a petition dated October 9, 2009, Mr. 

Lyle L. Latimer, Chairman of Mercer 

County Board of County 

Commissioners, asked the Department 

to move the county from the mountain 

time zone to the central time zone. 

Under the Uniform Time Act, the 

Secretary of Transportation has 

authority to issue regulations modifying 

the boundaries between time zones in 

the United States in order to move an 

area from one time zone to another. The 

standard in the statute for such 

decisions is ‘‘regard for the convenience 

of commerce and the existing junction 

points and division points of common 

carriers engaged in interstate or foreign 

commerce.’’ The principal standard for 

deciding whether to change a time zone 

is defined very broadly to include 

consideration of all the impacts upon a 

community of a change in its standard 

of time. DOT has developed a series of 

questions to assist communities and us 

in determining the impact of a time 

zone change on the ‘‘convenience of 

commerce.’’ The Department considers 

information bearing on these questions 

in making its decision on a proposed 

time zone change. 

1. From where do businesses in the 

community get their supplies, and to 

where do they ship their goods or 

products? 

2. From where does the community 

receive television and radio broadcasts? 

3. Where are the newspapers 

published that serve the community? 

4. From where does the community 

get its bus and passenger rail services; 

if there is no scheduled bus or passenger 

rail service in the community, to where 


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must residents go to obtain these 

services? 

5. Where is the nearest airport; if it is 

a local service airport, to what major 

airport does it carry passengers? 

6. What percentage of residents of the 

community work outside the 

community; where do these residents 

work? 

7. What are the major elements of the 

community’s economy; is the 

community’s economy improving or 

declining; what Federal, State or local 

plans, if any, are there for economic 

development in the community? 

8. If residents leave the community 

for schooling, recreation, health care, or 

religious worship, what standard of time 

is observed in the places where they go 

for these purposes? 

The Petition for Rulemaking 

In October 2009, the Board of 

Commissioners for Mercer County, 

North Dakota, petitioned the Secretary 

of Transportation to move Mercer 

County from the mountain time zone to 

the central time zone. The Mercer 

County petition stated several reasons 

for the request, outlining the 

Commission’s view of why the change 

would meet the ‘‘convenience of 

commerce’’ standard. The following is a 

summary of the reasons asserted in 

support of the request, which address 

several of the Department’s questions. 

• Almost all supplies for businesses 

in Mercer County, including the coal 

and agriculture industries, are shipped 

from the Bismarck/Mandan area and 

from other points in the central time 

zone. 

• Communications media 

(newspapers, radio and television 

stations) serving Mercer County are 

based in the Bismarck/Mandan area. 

• There is no regular passenger 

transportation serving Mercer County. 

Residents go to the Bismarck/Mandan 

area to catch planes, trains, and buses. 

• The main offices for several Mercer 

County energy industry facilities are 

located in Bismarck. 

• Many residents regularly travel to 

the Bismarck/Mandan area for 

recreation, health care, and other 

purposes. 

• Geographically, Mercer County is 

adjacent to the central time zone on the 

east, north, and south sides of the 

county, and is therefore well located for 

inclusion in the central time zone. The 

Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, 

located in Mercer County, is currently 

in the central time zone. 

Public Comments 

On March 3, 2010, the Department 

published a notice of proposed 

rulemaking (75 FR 9568) announcing 

the proposed change and inviting public 

comment. A DOT representative 

conducted a public hearing in Hazen, 

North Dakota on May 14, 2010. At the 

meeting, 14 persons spoke in favor of 

switching to central time and five spoke 

in favor of remaining in mountain time. 

Over 400 written comments were 

submitted to the docket. These 

submissions included many detailed 

letters, a number of anonymous 

comments, and some brief statements 

simply expressing a preference for 

either mountain or central time. The 

submissions came from individuals, 

businesses, medical service providers, 

local Chambers of Commerce, and 

school districts. We appreciate the time 

and effort of the people who expressed 

their opinion at the public meeting and 

through written comments, providing 

the Department with the factual basis 

upon which to make a decision. 

Comments in Support of Central Time 

Approximately 250 comments, 

including written submissions and 

those comments made at the hearing, 

favored a switch to central time. Our 

decision, however, is not based on the 

number of comments supporting a 

particular time zone. As discussed 

above, the decision is based on the 

statutory ‘‘convenience of commerce’’ 

standard and the comments help us to 

make the decision by providing factual 

information regarding the impact of a 

time zone change on a community. The 

comments supporting a move to central 

time addressed five impacted areas that 

would be improved by a change of time 

zones: (1) Transportation, (2) business, 

(3) schools and other public agencies, 

(4) health care, and (5) family life. 

In the area of transportation, many 

submissions noted that the closest 

transportation hub is Bismarck, which is 

on central time. Numerous individuals 

explained that catching a morning flight 

out of Bismarck is inconvenient, 

because they either have to get up very 

early in the morning to account for the 

one hour time difference, or pay to 

spend the night before their flight in a 

hotel. 

The docket included abundant 

comments focusing on the impact of a 

time zone switch on businesses in 

Mercer County. Most of the power 

plants and mines, which are major 

employers in Mercer County, already 

run on central time. The manager of 

Coyote electric generating plant 

expressed how confusing it is to be 

located in mountain time, but operating 

on central time. 

From the comments submitted, it 

appears that the majority of the county’s 

businesses have their suppliers and 

customers in central time and believe 

that moving Mercer County to central 

time would serve the convenience of 

commerce. Many people explained that 

because their businesses primarily 

conduct transactions with entities 

located in central time, they lose 

valuable work time every day—at least 

an hour in the morning, an hour at 

lunch time, and an hour at the end of 

the day. The manager of the Beulah 

Motor Vehicle Branch Office wrote that 

all their office support comes from the 

State office in Bismarck, and they 

therefore lose three hours a day of 

contact with key support functions. The 

President of Dakota Helicopters, Inc. 

explained that they are in a ‘‘constant 

battle’’ to complete their daily activities 

with their vendors in a shortened time 

span, because the vendors are all on 

central time. Other comments focused 

on the ongoing struggle businesses face 

to schedule meetings, teleconferences, 

and seminars with businesses located in 

central time. 

Being on mountain time also 

adversely affects the quality of services 

that businesses in Mercer County 

provide, commenters asserted. A 

submission from the secretary and 

treasurer of Knife River Indian Heritage 

Foundation portrayed how frequently 

tourists get confused about the time and 

arrive too early or too late for events at 

the Foundation. The owner of Beulah 

Drug Company explained that all of 

their suppliers and technical support 

are located on central or eastern time; 

on many occasions they have needed a 

service or product, but have had to wait 

an extra day because the supplier was 

already closed. The Beulah Public 

Library is one of only two libraries in a 

25-member consortium that is on 

mountain time, which creates 

scheduling issues. The Library also 

believes that switching to central time 

would allow them to better serve their 

patrons, because their hours would 

coincide with the area power plants and 

mines. Moreover, several business 

owners suggested that they would have 

an easier time recruiting employees who 

live in central time if Mercer County 

switched to central time. 

The Mercer County time zone also has 

a major impact on the schools. The 

Center-Stanton Public School Board, the 

Beulah Board of Education, and the 

Hazen Public School Board all 

submitted comments favoring a switch 

to central time. The Center-Stanton 

school district is currently divided, with 

half of the district on central time and 

half on mountain time. The 

Superintendent explained how this 

makes scheduling meetings difficult, 


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and it also requires the students residing 

in Stanton to wake up very early in the 

morning to be ready for the bus. 

The Beulah School Board said that in 

the 2008–2009 school year school 

athletic teams participated in 180 

varsity-level extracurricular contests, 

with 119 of those in central time. The 

comment explained that the students 

leaving school early for these events 

lose an hour of instruction more than 

they would if Mercer County were on 

central time. The Hazen School Board, 

as well as many parents of children in 

Mercer County schools, also expressed 

concern over the lost educational time. 

An added difficulty relates to the 

present trend of schools in North Dakota 

to move to distance education; the 

different time zones make the 

coordination of distance education 

cumbersome. 

A recurrent theme in the comments 

was that mountain time negatively 

impacts health care for Mercer County 

residents. A number of health care 

providers submitted comments to the 

docket addressing the operational issues 

that arise from the time zone difference. 

Some of the issues mentioned were that 

communications with health care 

facilities in Bismarck are more difficult 

to schedule, that patients often miss 

appointments because of the time 

difference, and that it is confusing for 

physicians in Bismarck to review charts 

of patients seen in Mercer County 

because they have to readjust the 

timeframe to determine when events 

occurred. The Medical Center noted that 

it is difficult for their providers to 

schedule follow-up appointments for 

patients who are seen in the middle to 

late afternoon at their clinics in Hazen, 

because the clinics in Bismarck and 

Minot are already closed. 

A large number of individuals 

described the inconvenience of making 

and attending medical appointments in 

central time. Many medical procedures 

are only offered in the larger medical 

facilities in Bismarck. These 

appointments are usually scheduled 

first thing in the morning. Thus, the 

Mercer County residents have to leave 

very early in the morning to get to 

appointments in central time. The 

Administrator of the Knife River Care 

Center, a long-term care facility in 

Beulah, wrote that they frequently 

transport residents to medical 

appointments in Bismarck. Having to 

leave so early in the morning makes it 

harder for the resident, the van driver, 

and the staff. The belief that medical 

care would be much more convenient if 

Mercer County switched to central time 

was mentioned numerous times in both 

the public hearing comments and the 

written comments. 

Many people also described the strain 

on family life that results from 

constantly coping with two time zones. 

They depicted households with two sets 

of clocks set to different time zones to 

accommodate the fact that the parents 

work in central time while the children 

attend school in mountain time. One 

commenter illustrated how confusing it 

is to make arrangements to see a high 

school basketball game and have dinner 

beforehand, when some of the family 

works on central time and some on 

mountain time. People wrote in to say 

that they feel like they live in a 

‘‘peninsula’’ or ‘‘pocket’’ of mountain 

time and that their lives would be 

simpler if they lived in the same time 

zone as surrounding counties, the 

counties on three sides of Mercer 

County being on central time. 

Comments in Favor of Mountain Time 

About 100 comments from 

individuals and businesses in Mercer 

County expressed support for mountain 

time. Comments voiced at the public 

hearing and also mentioned in the 

written submissions conveyed concern 

about children going to school in the 

dark. A high school teacher explained 

that she does not want to walk to school 

in the dark. 

Several individuals said they found 

living and working in different time 

zones to be very convenient. Some said 

that they enjoy finishing work in central 

time and still having time to shop in 

Mercer County where the businesses are 

still open. They can go to the drug store, 

the post office, and the banks after work. 

Other comments stated that a switch to 

central time would harm local 

businesses, because they would no 

longer offer the convenience of being 

open after the workers on central time, 

particularly those who work at the 

power plants, finish the workday. 

Additional commenters said that 

working on central time and having 

their children go to school on mountain 

time allows them to be home when their 

children get out of school and to attend 

school events without missing work. 

Several people enjoy that the evening 

TV news comes on earlier in mountain 

time than in central time. Some of the 

comments noted that Mercer County 

had been on mountain time throughout 

its history, and that the inconveniences 

of living on a time zone border (e.g., 

having two sets of clocks in the house) 

were things people were used to and 

could easily live with. 

Many comments asserted that 

mountain time is much preferred by the 

farmers and ranchers. Farmers were said 

to enjoy the extra daylight in the 

morning hours provided by mountain 

time, because they can finish their 

chores in time to attend evening events 

or to order parts from suppliers. 

Other Issues 

Close to 50 written comments, most of 

them anonymous, requested that the 

matter be put to a vote, such as an 

advisory referendum on the November 

2010 ballot. As a Federal agency, DOT 

has no authority to tell a county 

whether or not to hold a referendum, 

and it would be very inappropriate for 

us to do so. In addition, even if Mercer 

County were to hold a referendum on 

the time zone issue, the outcome of the 

vote would not necessarily be 

determinative. Rather, the Department is 

required to apply the statutory criteria 

set forth in the Uniform Time Act. 

Finally, several comments called for 

an end to daylight saving time 

observance in North Dakota. Under the 

Uniform time Act, State governments 

may decide to opt out of observing 

daylight saving time for all of the 

portion of a State in a given time zone. 

This issue is therefore outside the scope 

of this rulemaking. Those interested in 

the daylight saving time issue should 

explore the matter with their State 

officials. 

The Decision 

After weighing all the material in the 

record for this rulemaking, DOT has 

decided to place all of Mercer County 

on central time. We find that the 

proposed change requested by the 

County Commissioners suits ‘‘the 

convenience of commerce.’’ 

We believe that the change to central 

time will benefit the community in a 

variety of ways. Many individuals and 

businesses in Mercer County look to 

areas in the central time zone for 

commercial, health care, and 

transportation services. The change will 

improve access to medical care by 

making it easier to attend appointments 

in Bismarck. It will also simplify travel 

arrangements for those using the 

Bismarck airport. Employees of the coal 

or electric power industry in Mercer 

County, as well as those commuting to 

Bismarck-Mandan for work, will be on 

the same schedule at home and at work. 

The change should aid commerce by 

placing suppliers and businesses on the 

same schedule, thus eliminating the 

shortened workday that has arisen for 

many businesses in Mercer County. In 

addition, school children will no longer 

have to miss extra instructional time 

when they participate in extracurricular 

activities. Mercer County will now be in 

the same time zone as its main 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 188 / Wednesday, September 29, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 60007 

television broadcasts and newspapers. 

Finally, having Mercer County on 

central time should alleviate much of 

the confusion and scheduling 

complexity that have become a part of 

many residents’ daily lives. 

We understand that there are a 

number of individuals who are satisfied 

with mountain time and that this 

change will not be an easy transition for 

them. However, the Department is 

required to apply the statutory criteria 

set forth in the Uniform Time Act, and 

the reasons advanced by proponents of 

mountain time were fewer and 

considerably less strong, with respect to 

the ‘‘convenience of commerce’’ criteria, 

than those made by persons favoring the 

change. 

This decision will go into effect on 

November 7, 2010, at the same time that 

North Dakota changes from daylight 

saving time to standard time. Because 

the time zone change and the change 

from daylight saving time to standard 

time will coincide, Mercer County 

residents and organizations will not 

have to change their clocks this fall. 

Regulatory Analyses and Notices 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

The Department has determined that 

this action is not a significant regulatory 

action for purposes of Executive Order 

12866 or the Department’s regulatory 

policies and procedures. The rule 

primarily affects the convenience of 

individuals in scheduling their 

activities. It imposes no direct costs. Its 

impact is localized in nature, affecting 

only the residents of, and people who 

do business in, a single county. We 

expect the economic impact of this final 

rule to be so minimal that full 

Regulatory Evaluation under paragraph 

10e of the regulatory policies and 

procedures of DOT is unnecessary. 

While some small entities (i.e., small 

business or governmental entities in 

Mercer County) will be affected by 

setting their clocks differently than in 

the past, the economic effects of doing 

so would not be significant, and would 

largely be economically favorable to 

them. Therefore, the Department 

certifies that the rule would not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

Federalism 

This final rule has been analyzed in 

accordance with the principles and 

criteria contained in Executive Order 

13132 (‘‘Federalism’’). This final rule 

does not have a substantial direct effect 

on, or sufficient federalism implications 

for, the States, nor would it limit the 

policymaking discretion of the States. 

Therefore, the consultation 

requirements of Executive Order 13132 

do not apply. 

Unfunded Mandates 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) and E.O. 

12875, Enhancing the Intergovernmental 

Partnership (58 FR 58093; October 28, 

1993), govern the issuance of Federal 

regulations that impose unfunded 

mandates. An unfunded mandate is a 

regulation that requires a State, local, or 

Tribal government, or the private sector 

to incur direct costs without the Federal 

Government having first provided the 

funds to pay those costs. This rule does 

not impose an unfunded mandate. 

Protection of Children 

We have analyzed this rule under E.O. 

13045, Protection of Children from 

Environmental Health Risks and Safety 

Risks. This rule is not an economically 

significant rule and does not concern an 

environmental risk to health or risk to 

safety as defined by the Executive Order 

that may disproportionately affect 

children. 

Environment 

This rulemaking is not a major 

Federal action significantly affecting the 

quality of the human environment 

under the National Environmental 

Policy Act and, therefore, an 

environmental impact statement is not 

required. 

Consultation With Indian Tribal 

Governments 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 6, 2000) requires DOT to 

have an accountable process to ensure 

‘‘meaningful and timely input by Tribal 

officials’’ in the development of rules 

with Tribal implications. The Fort 

Berthold Indian Reservation is located 

in Mercer County. However, the 

Reservation already observes central 

time. This rule helps the Fort Berthold 

Indian Reservation by placing the 

surrounding areas in Mercer County in 

the same time zone as the Reservation. 

Furthermore, the representatives of the 

Reservation did not comment on the 

rule. This rule does not have substantial 

direct effects on an Indian tribe, or on 

the relationship between the Federal 

Government and Indian tribes, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities between the Federal 

Government and Indian tribes. 

Therefore, this rule does not have Tribal 

implications and does not preempt 

Tribal law. 

Privacy Act 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–78) or you 

may visit http://dms.dot.gov. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This rule does not create any 

information collection requirements 

covered by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act. 

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 71 

Time zones. 

Issued this 20th day of September, 2010, at 

Washington, DC. 

Ray LaHood, 

Secretary of Transportation. 

■ For reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Office of the Secretary 

amends Title 49 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations, Part 71, as follows: 

PART 71—STANDARD TIME ZONE 

BOUNDARIES 

■ 1. The authority citation for 49 CFR 

Part 71 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Secs. 1–4, 40 Stat. 450, as 

amended; sec. 1, 41 Stat. 1446, as amended; 

secs. 2–7, 80 Stat. 107, as amended; 100 Stat. 

764; Act of Mar. 19, 1918, as amended by the 

Uniform Time Act of 1966 and Pub. L. 

97–449, 15 U.S.C. 260–267; Pub. L. 99–359; 

Pub. L. 106–564, 15 U.S.C. 263, 114 Stat. 

2811; 49 CFR 1.59(a), unless otherwise noted. 

■ 2. Revise § 71.7 (a) to read as follows: 

§ 71.7 Boundary line between central and 

mountain zones. 

(a) Montana-North Dakota. Beginning 

at the junction of the Montana-North 

Dakota boundary with the boundary of 

the United States and Canada southerly 

along the Montana-North Dakota 

boundary to the Missouri River; thence 

southerly and easterly along the middle 

of that river to the midpoint of the 

confluence of the Missouri and 

Yellowstone Rivers; thence southerly 

and easterly along the middle of the 

Yellowstone River to the north 

boundary of T. 150 N., R. 104 W.; thence 

east to the northwest corner of T. 150 

N., R. 102 W.; thence south to the 

southwest corner of T. 149 N., R. 102 

W.; thence east to the northwest corner 

of T. 148 N., R. 102 W.; thence south to 

the northwest corner of 147 N., R. 102 

W.; thence east to the southwest corner 


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of T. 148 N., R. 101 W.; thence south to 

the middle of the Little Missouri; thence 

easterly and northerly along the middle 

of that river to the midpoint of its 

confluence with the Missouri River; 

thence southerly and easterly along the 

middle of the Missouri River to the 

midpoint of its confluence with the 

western land boundary of Mercer 

County; thence south along the western 

county line of Mercer County to the 

southwest boundary; thence east and 

south along the southwestern county 

boundary of Morton County to the 

intersection with the boundary with 

Sioux County; thence west and south 

along the northern boundary of Sioux 

County to the center of State Highway 

31; thence south along the center of 

State Highway 31 to the State border 

with South Dakota; thence east along 

the southern boundary of Sioux County 

in the middle of the Missouri River. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2010–24376 Filed 9–28–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 040205043–4043–01] 

RIN 0648–XY48 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; 

Closure of the 2010–2011 Commercial 

Sector for Black Sea Bass in the South 

Atlantic 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS closes the commercial 

sector for black sea bass in the exclusive 

economic zone (EEZ) of the South 

Atlantic. NMFS has determined that the 

quota for the commercial sector for 

black sea bass will have been reached by 

October 7, 2010. This closure is 

necessary to protect the black sea bass 

resource. 

DATES: Closure is effective 12:01 a.m., 

local time, October 7, 2010, through 

12:01 a.m., local time, on June 1, 2011. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Catherine Bruger, telephone 727–824– 

5305, fax 727–824–5308, e-mail 

Catherine.Bruger@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

snapper-grouper fishery of the South 

Atlantic is managed under the Fishery 

Management Plan for the SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic 

Region (FMP). The FMP was prepared 

by the South Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council and is 

implemented under the authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations 

at 50 CFR part 622. Those regulations 

set the commercial quota for black sea 

bass in the South Atlantic at 309,000 lb 

(140,160 kg) for the current fishing year, 

June 1, 2010, through May 31, 2011, as 

specified in 50 CFR 622.42(e)(5)(iii). 

Black sea bass are managed 

throughout their range. In the South 

Atlantic EEZ, black sea bass are 

managed by the Council from 35° 15.19′ 

N. lat., the latitude of Cape Hatteras 

Light, North Carolina, south. From Cape 

Hatteras Light, North Carolina, through 

Maine, black sea bass are managed 

jointly by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council and the Atlantic 

States Marine Fisheries Commission. 

Therefore, the closure provisions 

contained in this notice are applicable 

to those vessels harvesting or possessing 

black sea bass from Key West, Florida, 

through Cape Hatteras Light, North 

Carolina. 

Under 50 CFR 622.43(a), NMFS is 

required to close the commercial sector 

for a species or species group when the 

quota for that species or species group 

is reached, or is projected to be reached, 

by filing a notification to that effect with 

the Office of the Federal Register. Based 

on current statistics, NMFS has 

determined that the available 

commercial quota of 309,000 lb (140,160 

kg) for black sea bass will be reached on 

or before October 7, 2010. Accordingly, 

NMFS is closing the commercial sector 

for black sea bass in the South Atlantic 

EEZ from 12:01 a.m., local time, on 

October 7, 2010, through 12:01 a.m., 

local time, on June 1, 2011. The operator 

of a vessel with a valid commercial 

vessel permit for snapper-grouper 

having black sea bass onboard must 

have landed and bartered, traded, or 

sold such black sea bass prior to 12:01 

a.m., local time, October 7, 2010. 

During the closure, the bag limit and 

possession limits specified in 50 CFR 

622.39(d)(1)(vii) and (d)(2), respectively, 

apply to all harvest or possession of 

black sea bass in or from the South 

Atlantic EEZ, and the sale or purchase 

of black sea bass taken from the EEZ is 

prohibited. The prohibition on sale or 

purchase does not apply to sale or 

purchase of black sea bass that were 

harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior 

to 12:01 a.m., local time, October 7, 

2010, and were held in cold storage by 

a dealer or processor. For a person on 

board a vessel for which a Federal 

commercial or charter vessel/headboat 

permit for the South Atlantic snappergrouper fishery has been issued, the sale 

and purchase provisions of the 

commercial closure for black sea bass 

would apply regardless of whether the 

fish are harvested in state or Federal 

waters, as specified in 50 CFR 

622.43(a)(5)(ii). 

Classification 

This action responds to the best 

available information recently obtained 

from the fishery. The Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA 

(AA), finds that the need to immediately 

implement this action to close the 

commercial sector to the harvest of 

black sea bass constitutes good cause to 

waive the requirements to provide prior 

notice and opportunity for public 

comment pursuant to the authority set 

forth in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), as such 

procedures would be unnecessary and 

contrary to the public interest. Such 

procedures would be unnecessary 

because the rule itself already has been 

subject to notice and comment, and all 

that remains is to notify the public of 

the closure. 

Allowing prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment is 

contrary to the public interest because 

of the need to immediately implement 

this action to protect the black sea bass 

stock because the capacity of the fishing 

fleet allows for rapid harvest of the 

quota. Prior notice and opportunity for 

public comment would require time and 

would potentially result in a harvest 

well in excess of the established quota. 

For the aforementioned reasons, the 

AA also finds good cause to waive the 

30–day delay in effectiveness of the 

action under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 

This action is taken under 50 CFR 

622.43(a) and is exempt from review 

under Executive Order 12866. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

Dated: September 24, 2010. 

Carrie Selberg, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–24450 Filed 9–24–10; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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